pennyspoetryfandomcom-20200214-history
J.J. Jameson
Jacob J. Jameson (born January 28, 1940) was an American poet and activist in Chicago, Illinois from the mid-1980s until March 2005.Statement by David Gesic of Puddinhead Press, April 10, 2005. Angelfire, Web, Feb. 25, 2013. Life Jameson was born Norman A. Porter, Jr. in Woburn, Massachusetts. Porter pleaded guilty to charges of 2nd-degree murder in the 1960 fatal shooting of 22-year-old part-time clothing store clerk, John Pigott, at the Robert Hall clothing store in Saugus, Massachusetts with a sawed-off shotgun. In 1961, while awaiting trial on those charges, Porter was involved in the fatal assault in and shooting of the head jailer, David S. Robinson, at Middlesex County jail in Cambridge, Massachusetts and escaped from prison only to be captured while holding up a grocery store in New Hampshire. He also pleaded guilty to charges of 2nd-degree murder in that case, and was sentenced to 2 consecutive terms of life imprisonment. While in prison, Porter earned an undergraduate degree from Boston University, started a prison newspaper, published poetry, and founded a prison radio station. One of his life sentences was commuted by Governor Michael Dukakis in 1975. In December 1985, while being held at a prerelease center, he escaped by signing himself out for a walk Since his escape, he had been Massachusetts' most wanted fugitive. With $3,100 in his pocket, Porter hopped the 1st bus leaving Massachusetts that he could find and ended up in Chicago. There, he resolved that Norman Porter Jr. was now dead and that he had become Jacob J. Jameson, using the Social Security Number of a Massachusetts woman. He became a social activist, political volunteer, and poet.Mark Gribben, Fingerprints Don't Lie." Malefactors' Register, April 5, 2005. Web, Feb. 25, 2013. He lived on Chicago's West Side and made a living as a handyman and carpenter, while becoming involved in the Chicago poetry scene. He also joined the local Unitarian Church.Norman Porter, alias "J.J. Jameson", Book of Voices: Featured Artist, e-Poets.network. Web, Feb. 25, 2013. In 1993 Jameson was arrested on theft charges in Chicago and fingerprinted. He was known for his live performances as a poet and MC at local poetry jams and open mike nights. He also received attention for his September 1999 poetry chapbook, Lady Rutherford's Cauliflower, published by Puddin'head Press, which planned to publish a second volume of his work. He was known to be suffering from head tumors in early 2005. Friends and acquaintances planned to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of his arrival in Chicago with a roast and poetry reading later in 2005. Jameson was connected with Porter when fingerprints taken during his 1993 arrest were matched against Porter's fingerprints in an FBI database after a police officer saw his picture as Poet of the Month on ChicagoPoetry.com. On March 22, 2005, he was arrested by the Massachusetts State Police, Illinois State Police, and the Massachusetts Department of Correction in Chicago at the Third Unitarian Church, where he was a member of the congregation and sometimes worked as a handyman. Porter was then transferred under armed guard to Massachusetts where he faced charges of escape from a penal institution. On October 14, 2005, Porter was sentenced to 3 years in prison for his escape. He had a parole hearing Tuesday, October 6, 2009. Porter was denied parole by the Massachusetts Parole Board on January 12, 2010. Despite the support of prison officials and members of a Chicago church congregation, the parole board rejected Porter's request because he showed "limited remorse" and "continues to minimize his criminal activity." Recognition In March 2005 Jameson was named Poet of the Month by C.J. Laity of Chicagopoetry.com. The 2008 film Killer Poet, produced by Northern Light Productions, documented the Norman Porter story. Publications *''Lady Rutherford's Cauliflower''. Puddinhead Press, 1993. See also *List of U.S. poets References External links ;Poems *"Prison" *Poems by Porter/Jameson (14 poems) ;About * *Killer/escapee Norman Porter Jr. found living as poet in Chicago, Associated Press / Woburn Daily Times-Chronicle *Fingerprints Don't Lie at Malefactors' Register *[http://chicagopoetry.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=682 review of Lady Rutherford's Cauliflower] at Chicago Poetry. Category:Living people Category:American people convicted of murder Category:American poets Category:American Unitarians Category:People from Chicago, Illinois Category:American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Category:American escapees Category:Escapees from Massachusetts detention Category:Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Massachusetts Category:People convicted of murder by Massachusetts Category:1940 births Category:20th-century poets Category:English-language poets Category:Poets Category:Poets who committed murder